Comparison of Two Finite Difference Methods for the Numerical Analysis of Thermohydrodynamic Lubrication

A research program had been initiated to improve the analysis used for the design of spring-mounted, sector-pad thrust bearings by introducing a full thermohydrodynamic lubrication model. As part of this research program, the present study compared finite difference methods involving control volume and Taylor series formulations for the numerical analysis of thermohydrodynamic lubrication. A plane inclined surface bearing of infinite width was selected to illustrate the comparison. Detailed representations of both methods were presented along with five case studies and a total of nineteen thermohydrodynamic solutions. Based on our results, no significant differences in accuracy or computational effort were noted for the two solution methods. However, the control volume formulation did give slightly more accurate results for coarse calculation grids and handled situations involving backflow without difficulty. Thus, the present, authors gave a mild recommendation for selecting a control, volume formulation. Presented as a Society of Tribologists and Lubrication Engineers paper at the ASME/STLE Tribology Conference in Baltimore, Maryland, October 16–19, 1988